Elton John To Reveal Previously Unreleased Tracks For RSD

Music legend Elton John is noted as an avid record buyer so it is only fitting that he will be offering up a very special release for this year's Record Store Day on April 22nd.

Elton has announced that he will reissuing his '17-11-70' album as a 2 LP 180g vinyl set that has been remastered by Bob Ludwig and will include six previously unreleased tracks.

John shared the following background details about his historic recording, "The album '17-11-70' was not meant to be a live one at all; we did one of the first-ever stereo radio broadcasts live at A&R Recording Studios in New York City in 1970 on the 17th of November.

"It was Phil Ramone's studio, one of the greatest producers of all time, and we just went in the booth and played it as a three-piece: Nigel Olsson on drums and vocals, Dee Murray on bass and vocals, and myself. There was a studio audience of about 100 sitting outside the booth, hearing it coming through the loud speakers, and we just played.

"I'm astonished by how good we were, listening to this record. A lot of it was improvised, and you can do that when you're a three-piece band because I'm really the lead instrument, and Dee and Nigel were so brilliant at following what I did.

"There's a 16-minute track on it that was completely improvised, more or less, and I'm very proud of it: I think it's one of the greatest live albums ever made. It wasn't initially coming out as a live album, but there were so many bootlegs in those days that the record company put it out. I'm glad they did because it really is something I'm very, very proud of."